Trade Minister: Used Clothes Cause HIV

Indonesia’s trade minister has found himself the subject of ridicule after announcing that he will ban the importation of used clothes because they could cause HIV. “[Used clothes] could transmit HIV and skin diseases. It’s true. We have tested it in a laboratory,” Rahmat Gobel said to journalists Tuesday. On Wednesday, Rahmat took to Twitter to apologize, somewhat, saying, “I do apologize. I am clarifying [my statement] wearing used clothes can transmit various kind of diseases, thank you for your correction,” he wrote. In 2010, Indonesia’s former communications minister Tifatul Sembiring faced criticism for saying that AIDS stood for “Akibat Itunya Dipakai Sembarangan,” or “That’s what you get for sticking it just anywhere.”